Reuters AlertNet Full site
Homepage | Newsdesk | NGO Latest | Crisis briefings | Country profiles | MediaWatch | Jobs | Alerting | Login

NEWSDESK

More than 200 missing after Indonesia ferry sinks
12 Jan 2009 01:40:24 GMT
 Source: Reuters
PARE-PARE, Indonesia, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Indonesian rescue teams were desperately searching for more survivors on Monday as scores remained missing after a ferry carrying 250 passengers and 17 crew sank in stormy seas at the weekend in the country's east.

An official on the island of Sulawesi said only 20 survivors had been found so far and quoted them as saying the ferry rolled over and sank after being hit by waves of more than 5 metres (16 feet) in the early hours of Sunday.

"There is a greater possibility than many more died than we expected because it happened when they were sleeping," Taufik Bulu, head of maritime safety in the port of Pare-pare, said by telephone.

Rustam Pakaya, head of the health ministry's crisis centre, said on Monday that six deaths had been confirmed in the accident by Sunday evening.

On Sunday, Transport Minister Jusman Syafi'i Djamal said 150 people had been taken off the ferry, but their condition was unknown and he gave no further details. The discrepancy in the number of possible survivors could not immediately be clarified.

The ferry was travelling from Pare-Pare on the west coast of Sulawesi island to the city of Samarinda on Indonesia's side of Borneo island when it ran into bad weather, said Bulu.

Indonesia relies heavily on ferry services to connect the main islands in the archipelago, the world's largest.

But accidents are common, largely because of years of under-investment in the country's infrastructure and a tendency to overload ferries. (Additional reporting by Telly Nathalia in Jakarta; Writing by Ed Davies; Editing by Sugita Katyal)


AlertNet news is provided by
Email this article       Send comments

NGO latest

•  Indonesia, from rice field to fishpond: Reclaiming damaged land
IFRC - Switzerland

•  Strong earthquakes hit Indonesia's Papua - World Vision aid at the ready
World Vision - Asia Pacific

•  Tsunami response strengthens community coping
IFRC - Switzerland

•  The search for safe, sustainable alternatives to firewood: Bridging the gap between energy tech experts and humanitarians
Women's Commission - USA

•  The American Red Cross Helps Build New Community for Tsunami Survivors in the Maldives
Red Cross - USA

MORE >>

Latest news

•  More than 200 missing after Indonesia ferry sinks

•  Indonesian ferry carrying 250 passengers sinks

•  Indonesia ferry carrying 250 people sinks-minister

•  Indonesian ferry in accident - transport agency

•  Indonesian ferry with 200 on board missing - radio

MORE >>

AlertNet news is provided by

Background information

Facts & figures
Indonesia

Related articles

Breaking stories
 More than 200 missing after Indonesia ferry sinks (1 minute ago)

Indonesian ferry carrying 250 passengers sinks (1 minute ago)

AlertNet insight
 Aid agency study pinpoints climate change hotspots (1 minute ago)

Aid agency news feed
 Indonesia, from rice field to fishpond: Reclaiming damaged land (1 minute ago)

Blogs
 Jakarta Declaration on the Safety of Journalists in Asia-Pacific (1 minute ago)

Maps
 MAP: Indonesia, Papua Guinea, earthquakes (04 January 2009) (1 minute ago)


Del.icio.us Del.icio.us  |   Digg Digg  |   NewsVine NewsVine  |   Reddit Reddit   
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2009-01-09T102343Z_01_JAK06_RTRIDSP_2_INDONESIA_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/JAK06.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2009-01-08T125557Z_01_JAK08_RTRIDSP_2_QUAKE-INDONESIA_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/JAK08.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2009-01-04T135027Z_01_JAK14_RTRIDSP_2_QUAKE-INDONESIA_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/JAK14.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2009-01-04T134812Z_01_JAK13_RTRIDSP_2_QUAKE-INDONESIA_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/JAK13.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2009-01-04T133623Z_01_JAK12_RTRIDSP_2_QUAKE-INDONESIA_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/JAK12.htm

Visually impaired people from Ikatan Tunanetra Muslim Indonesia (indonesia Blind Muslim Unity) shout slogans as they walk in front of the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta January 9, 2009, in protest against ...


More pictures | Galleries
Disclaimers |  Copyright |  Privacy |  Contact Us |  Feedback |  About Us |  RSS XML

Last updated:Mon Jan 12 01:42:46 2009